Day 223

Little island house.

We kayaked all over this little lake today, in the most perfect weather.  The whole area is like a fairytale, beautiful trees, exquisite views. 

When my friend invited me I asked if they had a house there, and she said, "No, we just have a camp."  But of course I had no idea what is meant by that word.  For me it brings to mind tents and cooking over a fire, eating outside and peeing in the woods. 

So when we arrived we parked near this kind of three-sided shed, (which I learned later is called a pole-barn) and I thought, "Oh well, I'm glad I brought my sleeping bag, because this is almost like being outside, so I won't be cold, hopefully."  But then Anne marched on down a path to a dear little cabin, with proper beds and a fridge and a range and everything that was needed. 

Lots of talking and laughing and serious discussion and good eating and drinking ensued.  And her car broke down. 

And this is what we gave up by coming here - a history, many long years of being known by the people of your town, willing friends who come to your aid in times of trouble, because you have helped them out many a time before, or your father fixed their fridge, or your mother cured their sick baby.  Anne has known some people in this town since she was 9 years old!  A family friend pitched up with a spare car for her to borrow, after her broken-down one was towed away by a smiling man who remembered that his older twin sisters had gone to school with Anne!  There were constant greetings and long catching-up chats on our stroll through the town's picturesque shops and galleries. 

I felt a touch of regret, a longing for home, for familiarity, which is difficult to attain, which takes eons to build.

And then the long drive home.  Which took three and a half hours!  Two thirds of the way home I remembered my friend's house, and hastened there to use her toilet, but alas, she was not home, so I had to stop to pee in the bushes, after carefully determining that there was not one iota, not even a tiny leaflet, of poison ivy, poison oak, or poison sumac!

Self-portrait in the sugar-house this morning, a little bit wobbly, but the best I can do for now!